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As an organisation, you probably spend a lot of time thinking about what makes you different from your competitors. And while your company’s capabilities are an essential part of its competitive edge, they are not enough on their own. To find new ways to grow your business and stay competitive, you need to foster innovation.
And innovation is challenging. It’s often fraught with uncertainty, involves taking risks and challenging existing assumptions. In other words, it’s scary.
But it’s also how you grow. And the good news is that you don’t have to do it alone. You can lean on these five essential strategies to foster innovation in your company.
Embrace experimentation
Many of the most innovative companies in history were also the most experimental. Even if you don’t have an engineering background, it’s important to encourage experimentation with your team.
For example, Facebook has never been afraid to try new things and launch them quickly to see what works and what doesn’t.
Additionally, Google encourages employees to spend at least 20 percent of their time working on projects that interest them – something known as ’20/80′. Employees are encouraged to use this time to experiment with new ideas and technologies outside of their current roles.
Hire the best team
If you want to foster innovation in your company, one of the first places to start is with your team. Successful, innovative companies have a diverse set of minds working together. And that means hiring people who think differently than you and have different experiences.
Look for people who are analytical thinkers, have an interest in research and data, or have a wide range of diverse interests. When you hire these people, they will be able to think outside the box and challenge themselves and the status quo.
For example, if you’re a computer company and only hire software engineers, your product will never evolve and improve because nobody is challenging the assumptions about how technology should work. The same goes for not hiring anyone outside of STEM fields or anyone who isn’t an engineer.
Support development and creative ideas
You can foster innovation in your company by encouraging creative ideas.
Provide resources, like time to explore new concepts, and encourage employees to take on challenging tasks that make them uncomfortable. Offer plenty of space for creativity and set realistic deadlines; there’s usually a balance between the two. You should also be open to feedback to foster creativity.
Lead by example
The best way to get people on board with your innovation efforts is to lead by example. If you don’t walk the talk, then it will be hard for others in your organisation to do so. So, if you’re not naturally inclined to take risks or try new things, start small. Take on a new challenge that pushes your comfort zone just a little bit. By taking on this task yourself and seeing how successful it is, you may gain the confidence to pursue more significant challenges in the future.
And, if someone has an idea for a new product or service – but there’s no budget available – offer to fund it as a pilot project or look into r&d tax credits for additional funding.
Use software to support innovation
Software is a powerful tool for fostering innovation. Software can help you speed up decision making and make more informed decisions by providing instant access to data, analytics, and insights. You can also use it to keep pace with emerging trends since software can provide up-to-the-minute information on industry happenings. Using the right software tools to support your innovation process will help you make better decisions, find answers to tough questions, and keep up with emerging trends.
